October 31, 2022 (Monday)
Sam and Mercedes arrived at the JFK Airport in the middle of the afternoon, Eastern Time. They rented a car, but soon regretted it due to the congested New York City streets. Eventually they checked into their hotel room, and then arrived at the Anderson home—its stoop and front doors decorated in tasteful Halloween décor. Lucking out with a parking spot close by, the Evans couple got out of the car, headed up the steps and rang the doorbell. In a matter of seconds, they were greeted by their costume-clad friends. Even though they would not be trick-or-treating around the block with their daughter this year, Blaine imposed a Disney theme to Halloween that year so when he appeared at the door, he was dressed in dapper garb that made him closely resemble Prince Eric.
"Happy Halloween!" Mercedes cheered, stepping up to the door. She took in Blaine's costume and asked, "How are you not working at Disneyland?"
Blaine chuckled modestly, "Maybe one day before I get too old, they'll let me work there for one day."
"I still don't see why you and Sam didn't just let Blaine or I come pick you up," Kurt said, hugging his best friend and then moving to hug Sam. "It would have been much quicker since we know our way around better than you guys do." His own costume fashionably resembled Kuzco from The Emperor's New Groove, complete with a golden headpiece.
"Well Babe, maybe they wanted to enjoy the scenic route," suggested Blaine as he pulled out of his hug with Mercedes.
Kurt waved his logic off, "I suppose. But I'm glad you two finally made it. Mercedes you look fabulous by the way. And Sam…since when does Peter Pan wear sweat pants?"
"Since he found out how cold New York is in October."
While Mercedes was dressed in a pale green maternity-friendly baby doll dress with a cream cardigan and silver ballet flats, Sam wore a fitted green V-neck and equally green sweat pants. Mercedes held his hat in her hand, along with her wings.
"Oh it's not normally this chilly yet, but I don't blame you for the sweats," said Blaine. "Tights aren't exactly designed to keep you warm at night, unless you're leaping around on a stage under studio lights."
Sam regarded the short brunette as if he were speaking from experience. Mercedes tried not to laugh and Blaine looked at the two of them with a completely lost expression.
Kurt smiled at Blaine's obliviousness and shifted the attention, "Well, Lizzie's taking a nap but when she should be up within the next half hour. She'll be really excited her Uncle Sammy and Aunt 'Cedes are here."
Mercedes pouted, "Aww can I go wake her up?"
"Uh, you better not Mercedes," Blaine cautioned with a friendly smile. "If you and Sam are gonna take her trick-or-treating tonight, you're going to want her to take a nap now."
"Trust me, you'll get used to this." Kurt placed an eager hand on Mercedes' rounding stomach. "That baby's going to give you plenty of restless moments—you'll be thankful for the moments where you can rest."
The singer looked up at her husband and Sam looked back to her, matching her growing smile. Kurt and Blaine both caught their exchange with curious gazes on their own faces.
"Okaaaaay, what's that about?" Kurt asked, cocking a brow and folding his hands.
"Should we tell them now?" Sam asked.
Mercedes placed a hand on her tummy and grinned, "I think we better."
"Tell us what?" Blaine asked with thrilled suspicion.
Kurt gasped, throwing his hands over his mouth, "Oh my God—you know the sex of the baby, don't you? Tell me it's a girl and tell me you're not gonna torture me like Tina did before her shower!"
"How about we tell you that it's two babies and not just one?" asked Sam.
"What?" Blaine balked with a bright grin.
Kurt overrode his reaction with a sharp, "! Twins?"
"Does that mean two girls then?" Blaine mused.
Mercedes and Sam were both entertained by their excitement. Mercedes was the one to answer this time as she rubbed her stomach, "We don't know yet. We thought we'd find out last week, but these two did not wanna cooperate."
"Ahh, taking after their mommy already," teased Kurt. "Little divas in the making."
Sam and Blaine laughed and Mercedes swatted his arm. "They are not. They're just being shy like their daddy," she said.
"Oh sure, 'shy' is wearing gold shorts that were ready to split open on stage," mocked Kurt. "And dressing up like a wannabe Justin Bieber? Total shyness maneuver."
Sam and Blaine laughed again, and Mercedes joined them this time. Blaine then moved to hug Mercedes again, "Congratulations though you two. When are you due, Mercedes?"
"Mid- March," she answered brightly. "I have a c-section scheduled right around St. Patrick's Day."
"You must let me throw you the baby shower! Please?" begged Kurt with clasped hands and twinkling eyes.
"Sorry Kurt," Sam replied with an amused smile. "Our moms are already planning a shower in Lima together."
"Yeah, this year's our year to spend Christmas in Lima with my family," Mercedes explained. "But our moms wanted to put the shower together before I'm too far along to travel, so they're doubling the shower with the holidays."
As the two men gathered up their things to leave, Blaine told the Evans couple, "Well we'll be in Lima for the week of Christmas to visit our families."
"Oh you know you guys will be invited. I sent list of people to invite to my mom and Mrs. Evans so you guys will get an invite."
As the four chattered on, little Lizzie Anderson appeared at the top of the stair case, rubbing her eyes. "Papa I'm hungr—" She gasped, "Aunt 'Cedes! Uncle Sammy!"
Immediately she bounded down the stairs and right into Sam's waiting arms. The blond picked up the freckle-nosed brunette and gave her a quick peck on the cheek, "Hey munchkin!"
"Hi Uncle Sammy!" She quickly appraised his green attire and scrunched up her freckled nose, "Uncle Sammy, Shrek's not Disney!"
Mercedes giggled, "He's not Shrek, sweetie. Here let's see if this helps." She reached up with the Peter Pan hat and Sam ducked his head to help. Once it was situated on his head, he smiled to Lizzie.
The young girl gasped, "Peter Pan!"
"Uncle Sammy's gonna be her hero tonight," Blaine commented to his husband.
"Yeah, she adores Peter Pan," added Kurt.
Lizzie perked up even more when she looked to her aunt, "Are you Tinkerbell?"
With a smile and a few slow nods, Mercedes told her, "I sure am!" She held up her wings while asking the young girl, "And who are you going to be?"
"Belle! I'm Belle!" she cheered.
Mercedes was stuck on the little girl's enthusiasm while the men smiled and chuckled. She reached up for Lizzie, and was quickly clung to by the small brunette.
"I was actually going to ask you, Mercedes, if you would do her hair tonight?" asked Blaine. "I'm no good at buns and—"
"And my specialties are braids and ponytails. Plus Rachel won't be here until later and knowing Lizzie, she'll want to get her costume on, A-SAP!"
"Yeah no problem!" Mercedes replied and then looked to Lizzie. "I'll have you looking like the best Belle there ever was."
"Yay!" cheered Lizzie. Her hand jutted out, pointing toward the staircase, "C'mon! Let's go!"
Lizzie's preparations for trick-or-treating were delayed when her fathers insisted she eat dinner first. They had order a few pizzas which had just arrived, and Kurt wandered into the kitchen to wash off some grapes for his daughter and best friend. As they all started eating, Rachel and Jesse showed up, donning a couples' costume of Raggedy Ann and Andy. While they helped themselves to pizza, Kurt, Blaine and Sam hung out downstairs and Mercedes walked Lizzie up to her pink and yellow-themed room. She helped the littlest Anderson change into her Belle ball gown and was humming softly as her hands delicately parted Lizzie's auburn hair in a half up-half down 'do.
"Aunt 'Cedes?"
Mercedes quit humming, "Yeees?"
"Papa and Daddy said that you're and Uncle Sammy's having a baby."
"That's true. Uncle Sammy and I are actually having two babies though."
Lizzie gasped loudly, "Two babies? How?"
Mercedes smiled, "Well…sometimes people have more than one baby at a time. I'm having two babies so they're called 'twins'."
"Oh…" Lizzie sat on the bed beside her aunt, playing with the fringe of her yellow gown. "How do you know which one you're talking to?"
"What do you mean, sweetie?"
"You said they're called Twins! How do you know which one you're talking to if they're both called Twins?"
She giggled at the girl's innocence, "Oh, I didn't mean that 'Twins' is their name."
"What's their name?"
"I'm not sure yet. Uncle Sammy and I have to figure that out, don't we?"
Lizzie nodded, "Yeah, you gotta name them something pretty, Aunt 'Cedes!"
"Like what, Lizzie?" she asked, finishing up on the Belle-esque hairstyle.
"Uhhhmmmmm…like Jessie! Like Jessie from Toy Story! Oh! Or Wendy from Peter Pan!"
Mercedes couldn't help giggling again, "What if they're boys?"
"Oh… I 'onno. Peter?"
"I should have known as much," she said with a giggle. She lifted Lizzie into her lap with a playful groan, "You are getting so big sweetie. Are you ready for some trick-or-treating?"
Lizzie turned to her, beaming excitedly, "Uh-huh!"
She went running out of the room ahead of Mercedes and didn't slow down until she came to the staircase. Her hand held the railing as she made deliberately poised steps down each step. Kurt rushed to the stairs with his camera, posing as her personal paparazzi while Blaine complimented her profusely on how lovely she was as Belle. Mercedes joined in the showering of compliments as she started carefully descending the stairs.
When Lizzie reached the bottom of the stairs, she struck a few poses and rotated around the group of adults for pictures. With some help from Sam, Mercedes slipped her pixie wings on and sat down on the stairs for her photos with Lizzie, and when the young girl hopped up, Sam took her place for a photo with his wife. They took one, smiling side by side and the second photo Kurt snapped of them, Sam had pressed a kiss to Mercedes' tummy.
After all the photos were taken, Lizzie grabbed her jack-o-lantern bucket and darted to the front door. Sam wandered after her and Mercedes followed but she looked back to her friends. "Are you sure you guys aren't gonna come?"
Kurt happily shook his head while Blaine explained, "It's okay. We're actually looking forward to handing out candy this year."
"Yeah," chimed in Rachel, "And Jesse and I need to preserve our voices and the night air won't do us any favors in the morning."
Jesse nodded, but waved, "You guys have fun though."
Lizzie waved eager, "Bye Aunt Rachel! Bye Jesse! Bye Papa! Bye Daddy!" She gripped Sam's hand tightly and tugged him out the door with Mercedes following close behind.
Sam chuckled, "Alright we're just going around a couple blocks, Munchkin, and then head home."
She pouted her dark pink lips, "Oookayyy."
Mercedes poked her lower lip, "Aw don't pout sweetie. Come on—it's gonna be fun!"
The trio walked to the next house—a group of trick-or-treaters darting ahead of them, further up the block. Mercedes offered to walk up the neighbor's stoop with her but Lizzie declared her independence and went up to the door herself. Sam and Mercedes watched from the sidewalk as the door swung open and Lizzie boisterously called, "Trick-or-treat!"
Sam slipped his arm lovingly around his wife when she leaned into him. "How are you doing?" he asked while keeping an eye on their pseudo-niece.
"I'm alright. I'll be able to handle the couple of blocks and then probably be ready for bed."
Sam kissed the top of her head, "I'll drive us to the hotel after we bring Lizzie back."
She nodded and rose up on her toes to peck the corner of his mouth just as Lizzie came hopping down the stoop.
"I got two candies!"
"You did?" asked Mercedes as Lizzie eagerly held up her Halloween bucket.
Sam and Mercedes peered inside to see a Dum Dum and a mini packet of Skittles sitting in the bottom.
"Whoa, you better keep those Skittles from your Aunt 'Cedes." He whispered loudly enough for Mercedes to hear him say, "They're her favorite." After winking to Lizzie, he grinned when she horded the bucket close to her chest and paraded on to the next house.
When the young girl wasn't looking, Mercedes playfully swatted his shoulder. "Wait 'til I tell her your favorite candies. She's not gonna wanna show you her bucket anymore."
"Pft, what about you?" he challenged with a smirk.
"Everyone hands out Reese's cups and Mini-Snickers on Halloween, Evans. She's gonna have more of those than the Skittles packets."
Sam raised a brow and smirked, "Then that means that talking her into sharing them with Uncle Sammy will be easy. She won't wanna give up her Skittles if they're rare."
Outwitted, Mercedes pouted and walked on to keep up with Lizzie, but her hand slipped down to hold Sam's.
They walked around the two blocks with their fingers intertwined; halfway around the second block, they were caught by the paparazzi. Sam took hold of Lizzie's hand with his free one during the walk along the sidewalk, and he escorted her up to the doors of the remaining houses. But the inquiries from the photographers were relentless.
"So Mercedes, when are you due?"
"Why the secrecy?"
"When are you going to confirm your pregnancy, Ms. Jones?"
"Are you hoping for a boy, Sam?"
"Getting some practice in, you two?"
"Who's this little princess with you?"
Lizzie proudly answered that, "I'm Belle!"
Mercedes smiled throughout the questioning but grinned particularly wide when Lizzie misunderstood their question.
Sam picked Lizzie up and whispered, "Let's not talk to them okay, Munchkin?"
"But why?" Lizzie asked back.
"Because," Sam whispered again, "we shouldn't talk to strangers. Especially strangers with cameras, okay?"
Lizzie nodded and Sam kept her held to his hip while his right hand reclaimed Mercedes' left. They skipped the last few houses and returned to Kurt and Blaine's house.
Mercedes and Sam apologized for the surveillance that was now happening in front of their house. Blaine and Kurt pardoned it and sat down in the sitting room floor with Lizzie to count and appraise her candy. Meanwhile, Mercedes struck up a conversation with Rachel and Jesse.
"Hey are you two going back to Ohio for Christmas this year?" asked Mercedes.
Jesse immediately answered, "Well, I probably won't be. I was going to visit my parents, but it looks like my role in Les Mis has been sealed so I'll be staying in New York through the holidays."
Rachel pouted and rubbed his shoulder, "Yeah Jesse's been working so hard on this role, but I'll be going back to Lima. My dads would be devastated if I wasn't home for Hannukah, and my audition for the revival of Wicked won't be until after the New Year, so I'm planning to stay through Christmas." She smiled again, "Why do you ask?"
Mercedes smiled as well and passed on the news of her and Sam's twins, and the plans for a Christmastime baby shower. Rachel's jaw slackened a fraction—her head gradually tilted and her eyes were fixed in a wide gaze. She stared at Mercedes as though the black diva had told her she was coming to steal one of her Tonys away.
Sam's once elated expression morphed into confusion. He waved a hand in front of Rachel's face, "Uh…Rachel?"
Jesse nudged her and uttered her name, snapping her out of her momentary lapse into shock. She blinked furiously and then shook her head with an overly sweet smile. "I—sorry, I just…I'm really happy for you two and…" She couldn't fix her gaze on either Evans as her hands busied themselves, tucking back the bright red strands of her wig behind her ear. "Y-yes, I will be at the shower. Excuse me, I have to…bathroom."
Rachel abruptly rose from the sitting room and made quick steps towards the downstairs restroom. Jesse stared awkwardly at the ceiling while Sam and Mercedes looked to one another, lost.
"Okay, what was that about?" Mercedes asked, looking to Kurt for an answer, which he happened to have.
He seemed a bit reluctant to say, but finally he let out a sigh and asked Blaine, "Babe, I think it's time for Lizzie to get some sleep."
Blaine comprehended and stood up from the rug with Lizzie's candy bucket. "Alright Princess, say 'goodnight'."
Though their daughter was pouting again, she rose to her feet and made her rounds about the sitting room, hugging everyone and saying goodnight. She gave Mercedes an especially long hug around her middle and giggled when Sam kissed her on the cheek. Blaine then scooped her up and carried her up the stairs while Jesse stood and quietly told them all, "I'm gonna go check on Rachel."
Kurt nodded and as soon as he was out of sight, he looked to Sam and Mercedes and spoke lowly, "Rachel…I'm sure she saw her life being different than it is now."
Sam's brows furrowed again, "Why? I don't get it: she's a Broadway star. She's got a Tony, and she lives in New York."
"Yeah this is what she's been talking about since we've known her," added an equally confused Mercedes.
"I know," answered Kurt. "But I think she had imagined herself having a family by now too. As much as she tried, it didn't happen with Finn but now he and Quinn are starting a family. And I don't ever hear Jesse bring up the topic of kids, so I just get the feeling she's not as over-the-moon about babies or showers or things like that. But…she does feel a kinship towards Lizzie, and visits her often. You know—both of them being raised by two gay dads and all."
Mercedes grimaced. She spent a moment wondering if it would help or hinder the situation by going to talk to Rachel, one-on-one. On the one hand, she could see how talking to Rachel about children and family could seem like she was unintentionally rubbing salt in Rachel's wound. But on the other hand, she had hoped that she could say something to comfort her friend. Before she could make up her mind however, the downstairs bathroom opened and two pairs of footsteps thudded softly down the short hallway.
Rachel appeared with Jesse coming up behind her. She cast an apologetic smile and softly spoke, "I'm sorry, all of you but especially you Mercedes, and Sam."
Mercedes shook her head, "You don't have to apologize. But…what are you doing tomorrow?"
Rachel shook her head and shrugged, "Free as a bird tomorrow. Why?"
"Sam and I are staying at the Plaza. Wanna meet me there at 1? You can show me a cool vegan spot for lunch. My treat."
Rachel's lips curved into a more genuine smile; she placed both hands to her apron-shielded chest, "I'd love that."
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